Here more than two hundred of those grim Courtiers stood wondering at
him [John Smith], as he had beene a monster; till Powhatan[2] and his
train had put themselves in their greatest braveries. Before a fire
upon a seat like a bedsted, he sat covered with a great robe, made of
Rarowcun skinnes, and all the tayles hanging by. On either hand did
sit a young wench of 16 or 18 years, and along on each side the house,
two rowes of men, and behind them as many women, with all their heads
and shoulders painted red; many of their heads bedecked with the
white downe of Birds; but every one with something: and a great chain
of white beads about their necks.
[Footnote 1: From Smith's "Generall Historie of Virginia."]
[Footnote 2: Powhatan was chief of a confederacy of Indians known as
the Powhatans, which he had raised from one comprizing only seven
tribes to one of thirty. The word Powhatan means "falls in a stream,"
and was originally applied to the falls in the James river at
Richmond.]
At his entrance before the King, all the people gave a great shout.
The Queene of Appamatuck was appointed to bring him water to wash his
hands, and another brought him a bunch of feathers, instead of a towel
to dry them. Having feasted him after their best barbarous manner they
could, a long consultation was held, but the conclusion was, two great
stones were brought before Powhatan: then as many as could laid hands
on him, dragged him to them, and thereon laid his head, and being
ready with their clubs, to beate out his braines, Pocahontas the
King's dearest daughter, when no intreaty could prevaile, got his head
in her armes, and laid her owne upon his to save him from death:
whereat the Emperour was contented he should live to make him
hatchets, and her bells, beads, and copper; for they thought him as
well of all occupations as themselves. For the King himselfe will make
his owne robes, shooes, bowes, arrowes, pots; plant, hunt, or doe any
thing so well as the rest....
To conclude our peace, thus it happened. Captaine Argall[3] having
entered into a great acquaintance with Japazaws, an old friend of
Captaine Smith's, and so to all our Nation, ever since hee discovered
the Countrie: hard by him there was Pocahontas, whom Captaine Smith's
Relations intituleth the Numparell of Virginia, and tho she had beene
many times a preserver of him and the whole Colonie, yet till this
accident shee was never seene at James towne since his departure,
being at Patawomeke, as it seemes, thinking her selfe unknown, was
easily by her friend Japazaws perswaded to goe abroad with him and his
wife to see the ship, for Captaine Argall had promised him a Copper
Kettle to bring her but to him, promising no way to hurt her, but
keepe her till they could conclude a peace with her father. The
Salvage for this Copper Kettle would have done any thing, it seemed by
the Relation; for tho she had seene and beene in many ships, yet he
caused his wife to faine how desirous she was to see one, and that he
offered to beat her for her importunitie, till she wept.
[Footnote 3: Argall, through intimidation or bribery, had made
Pocahontas a captive in 1612, when she was the wife of an Indian
attached to her father as a subordinate chief or leader.]
But at last he told her, if Pocahontas would goe with her, he was
content: and thus they betrayed the poore innocent Pocahontas aboord,
where they were all kindly feasted in the cabin. Japazaws treading oft
on the Captaine's foot, to remember he had done his part, the Captaine
when he saw his time, perswaded Pocahontas to the gun-roome, faining
to have some conference with Japazaws, which was only that she should
not perceive he was any way guiltie of her captivitie: so sending for
her againe, he told her before her friends, she must goe with him, and
compound peace betwixt her Countrie and us, before she ever should see
Powhatan, whereat the old Jew and his wife began to howle and crie as
fast as Pocahontas, that upon the Captaine's fair perswasions, by
degrees pacifying her selfe, and Japazaws and his wife, with the
Kettle and other toys, went merrily on shore, and she to James towne.
A messenger forthwith was sent to her father, that his daughter
Pocahontas he loved so dearly, he must ransome with our men, swords,
pieces, tooles, etc., he trecherously had stolne....
Long before this, Master John Rolfe, an honest Gentleman, and of good
behaviour, had beene in love with Pocahontas, and she with him, which
thing at that instant I made knowne to Sir Thomas Dale by a letter
from him, wherein hee intreated his advice, and she acquainted her
brother with it, which resolution Sir Thomas Dale[4] well approved.
The bruit of this mariage came soone to the knowledge of Powhatan, a
thing acceptable to him, as appeared by his sudden consent, for within
ten days he sent Opachisco, an old Uncle of hers, and two of his sons,
to see the manner of the mariage, and to doe in that behalfe what they
requested, for the confirmation thereof, as his deputie; which was
accordingly done about the first of Aprill. And ever since we have had
friendly trade and commerce, as well with Powhatan himself, as all his
subjects....
[Footnote 4: Dale was colonial governor of Virginia in 1611 and again
in 1614-16. In the latter year he returned to England, taking with him
Captain Rolfe and Pocahontas.]
The Lady Rebecca,[5] alias Pocahontas, daughter to Powhattan, by the
diligent care of Master John Rolfe her husband and his friends, as
taught to speake such English as might well bee understood, well
instructed in Christianitie, and was become very formal and civil
after our English manner; she had also by him a childe which she loved
most dearely and the Treasurer and Company tooke order both for the
maintenance of her and it, besides there were divers persons of great
ranke and qualitie had beene very kinde to her; and before she arrived
at London, Captaine Smith to deserve her former courtesies, made her
qualities knowne to the Queene's most excellent Majestie and her
Court, and writ a little booke to this effect to the Queene: An
abstract whereof followeth.
[Footnote 5: Under that name Pocahontas had been baptized in the
original Jamestown church. A legend has survived that an old font, now
preserved in the church at Williamsburg, is the one from which she was
baptized.]
"_To the most high and vertuous Princesse Queene Anne of Great
Brittanie._
"MOST ADMIRED QUEENE,
"The love I beare my God, my King, and Countrie hath so oft emboldened
me in the worst of extreme dangers, that now honestie doth constraine
mee presume thus far beyond my selfe, to present your Majestie this
short discourse: If ingratitude be a deadly poyson to all honest
vertues, I must bee guiltie of that crime if I should omit any meanes
to bee thankful. So it is, that some ten yeers agoe being in Virginia,
and taken prisoner by the power of Powhatan their chiefe King, I
received from this great Salvage exceeding great courtesie, especially
from his son Nantaquaus, the most manliest, comeliest, boldest spirit,
I ever saw in a Salvage, and his sister Pocahontas, the King's most
deare and well-beloved daughter, being but a childe of twelve or
thirteene yeers of age, whose compassionate pitiful heart, of
desperate estate, gave me much cause to respect her: I being the
first Christian this proud King and his grim attendants ever saw: and
thus inthralled in their barbarous power, I cannot say I felt the
least occasion of want that was in the power of those my mortal foes
to prevent, notwithstanding all their threats. After some six weeks
fatting among those Salvage Courtiers, at the minute of my execution,
she hazarded the beating out of her owne braines to save mine, and not
only that, but so prevaild with her father, that I was safely
conducted to James towne, where I found about eight and thirtie
miserable poore and sicke creatures, to keepe possession of all those
large territories of Virginia. Such was the weaknesse of this poore
Commonwealth, as had the Salvages not fed us, we directly had starved.
"And this reliefe, most gracious Queene, was commonly brought us by
this Lady Pocahontas, notwithstanding all these passages when
inconstant Fortune turned our peace to war, this tender Virgin would
still not spare to dare to visit us, and by her our jars have beene
oft appeased, and our wants still supplyed; were it the policie of her
father thus to imploy her, or the ordinance of God thus to make her
His instrument, or her extraordinary affection to our Nation, I know
not: but of this I am sure:--when her father with the utmost of his
policie and power, sought to surprize mee, having but eighteene with
mee, the darke night could not affright her from comming through the
irkesome woods, and with watered eyes gave me intelligence, with her
best advice to escape his furie; which had hee knowne, hee had surely
slaine her. James towne with her wild traine she as freely
frequented, as her father's habitation; and during the time of two or
three yeeres, she next under God, was still the Instrument to preserve
this Colonie from death, famine and utter confusion, which if in those
times had once beene dissolved, Virginia might have line as it was at
our first arrival to this day. Since then, this businesse having beene
turned and varied by many accidents from that I left it at: it is most
certaine, after a long and troublesome war after my departure, betwixt
her father and our Colonie, all which time shee was not heard of,
about two yeeres after she her selfe was taken prisoner, being so
detained neere two yeeres longer, the Colonie by that meanes was
relieved, peace concluded, and at last rejecting her barbarous
condition, was maried to an English Gentleman, with whom at this
present she is in England; the first Christian ever of that Nation,
the first Virginian ever spake English, or had a childe in mariage by
an Englishman, a matter surely, if my meaning bee truly considered and
well understood, worthy a Prince's understanding....
"The small time I staid in London, divers Courtiers and others, my
acquaintances, hath gone with mee to see her, that generally
concluded, they did thinke God had a great hand in her conversion, and
they have seen many English Ladies worse favored, proportioned and
behaviored, and as since I have heard, it pleased both the King and
Queene's Majestie honorably to esteeme her, accompanied with that
honorable Lady the Lady De la Warre, and that honorable Lord her
husband, and divers other persons of good qualities, both publikely
at the maskes and otherwise, to her great satisfaction and content,
which doubtlesse she would have deserved had she lived to arrive in
Virginia."[6]
[Footnote 6: Pocahontas in England gave birth to a son. She died at
Gravesend in the following year, in 1617. The parish records of
Gravesend describe her as "a Virginia lady borne, here was buried in
ye chauncell." In London a well-known street preserves a memorial of
her in its name--La Belle Sauvage. Her son, Thomas Rolfe, after living
many years in England, settled in Virginia. Several families in that
State have traced their descent from him. One of these was the famous
John Randolph of Roanoke.]